Ghostbusters 3 Aims To Start Production Early Next Year

After many, many, many years of false starts and rumors, it's tremendously hard to really trust Ghostbusters 3 stories anymore, but we may now be closer than ever to seeing the film actually happen: Deadline is now reporting that Sony Pictures is moving full steam ahead with the 80s comedy sequel and plans to have cameras rolling on the production early next year. Perhaps the biggest new development, however, is in regard to who will be sitting in the director's chair.

While it has long been planned that it would be Ivan Reitman who would end up directing Ghostbusters 3 - as he was also the man behind the first two movies - apparently that is no longer the case. Following the tragic death of star Harold Ramis, Reitman has decided that he no longer wants to direct the film himself. Instead, he will only serve as a producer and will assist the studio in finding his replacement.

Reitman actually spoke with Deadline to announce his decision to step away as director on the project and the filmmaker also went into some detail about the trials and the tribulations that the project has experienced over the years. He explains what kind of role we can expect the original Ghostbusters to have in the script and that he ultimately just wasn't interested in taking on a blockbuster-level film. Said the filmmaker,

"When I came back from Haroldís funeral, it was really moving and it made me think about a lot of things. Iíd just finished directing Draft Day, which Iím really happy with and proud of. Working on a film that is smaller and more dramatic was so much fun and satisfying. I just finally met with Amy [Pascal] and Doug Belgrad when I got back. I said Iíd been thinking about it for weeks, that Iíd rather just produce this Ghostbusters. I told them I thought I could help but letís find a really good director and make it with him. So thatís what weíve agreed will happen. I didnít want all kinds of speculation about what happened with me, that is the real story."

Exactly who those original Ghostbusters will be remains a big question mark. Bill Murray has really been out of the picture since 2012, and after Ramis passing that only leaves Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson. Even Hudson's connection to the project may be questionable, however. After Ramis' death, the actor known to fans as Winston Zeddmore told a reporter, "There can't be another Ghostbusters without Harold. It will be a Ghost- something, but it won't be... That was always my fear - that something would happen before we all got together."

As for the search for Reitman's replacement, the filmmaker and the studio have already been working on drafting a short list and a timetable is already being put in place. "Iím not going to say how many Ghostbusters there will be in the new cast, but we are determined to retain the spirit of the original film, and I am pleased that all of this seems to have happened organically," Reitman told the site. "Iím hoping we can get started by the fall, set in New York, but given the logistics and the stuff that happens, the beginning of 2015 seems more likely."

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